Glitchy (Larry au)
by miloutic
Summary: After Harry's intruded Louis' daily life, Louis can't help but notice that something is not right about the new human in town. He feels like he's known him for ever, though they've only just met. Mix in a failed experiment and a mad scientist, and something is bound to go wrong along the way. or, the world is a game, Harry is a glitch. (not the final cut)


The first time Louis sees the new boy, he's on a shift in the supermarket. It's not often that new individuals would come to their, quite isolated, island. It's why he slides behind the aisle, to hide from the boy, his flame inside slightly flickering. The boy is beyond gorgeous, which is definitely a much too subjective description, but Louis' brain is stuck in the endless cycle of repetition of the phrase. It's when the boy suddenly looks up that Louis snaps out of it.

"Can I help you with anything ?"comes out of his mouth, routine making this easier than he'd thought it would be. The boy smiles.

"i'm looking for the flour, but your aisles are very unordened," he says, and oh god, his voice is melodic and low, a beautiful but raspy bass. Louis' face is burning hotter than it ought to. "and maybe also chocolate chips, but you don't have those, so normal chocolate is also ok."

"Ah ." Louis nods. Then frowns. "We indeed don't have regular chocolate chips , how did you guess ? Though I don't suppose we sell flowers either . Sorry ." The beauty laughs cheerfully, but Louis notices a tint of nervousness hanging on the edge of his voice.

"lucky guess. it's a small island. i was talking about flour, though, not flowers."

That shuts Louis up, and his face burns more badly. The life of a will-o'-the-wisp, honestly. Always burning. "I apologise , the baking aisle is this way . It has chocolate and flour ."

They silently walk over to the aisle, Louis waving his hand towards the direction of the flour as they stop. "Here you go , mate . Watcha planning on baking ?"

"chocolate chip vanilla roll cake," the boy replies. "i saw the recipe a couple days ago on the internet. it looked good." His eyes scan over the shelves, and Louis gets a shiver by his lowercase dialogue-ing. He has never see someone not using capitalisation; though Niall talks in all caps, the opposite would have to exist, too. It still gives him the creeps, it's so-

so chill? Louis doesn't know how to articulate the shiver it sends down his spine.

"Sounds good , I've never tried a roll cake before ," Louis replies. He'd seen them in the local bakery, though. It had lots of cream, just his thing. Louis groans at that internally, did he really go there.

"they are good. my baking skill is finally high enough to do it, and i'm quite excited to try it out," the boy says. "i'll be sure to give you a piece, louis," he then adds. Then starts. "sorry, that was rude. i saw your name on your name plate," he explains with haste.

"No problem , mate ," Louis shrugs. "It's what it's there for , I suppose ." The boy laughs nervously.

"it's only polite to introduce myself, then. my name is harry." the boy- Harry, Louis' eyes sparkle- smiles at Louis, and sticks out his hand. Louis grins as he accepts the handshake, but freezes as he hears a loud _pfffghrhfrtt_ sounding through the silent shop. He wildly looks up to Harry, who is trying to hold his laughter.

"What the fuck ?" blurts Louis, staring wide-eyed at Harry.

"heh. the old whoopee-cushion in the hand trick; it _always_ works," says the latter. Louis finds him very obnoxious already. However, not egoistically so. Louis likes him.

"Are you joking ," says Louis. "That was absolutely horrendous . Is that your party trick or something ? A pickup line ? Because if it is , your charisma skills could be worked on ."

"my charisma stat is literally on my maximum, unfortunately. so it's either this or nothing, i'm afraid," Harry replies. "all my stats are at my max, actually. jealous?"

Hell yeah Louis is jealous. How the fuck does one do that? It took him ages to maximise his speed. His DF is absolutely horrible. "Hell yeah I am , how the fuck did you do that ?" he demands.

Harry laughs again. "a lady never tells her secret," he says as he puts a finger on his mouth. Louis gives him a deadpan look. "anyway, can you ring me up? i'd like to start baking soon, so i finish before evening."

"Oh ." Oh yeah, Harry is a customer. Louis had quite forgotten. "Yeah , of course ," he quickly takes the items from Harry, and scans them. Harry has already taken out the amount of gold he owes the store. Louis likes him a lot; that makes his job so much easier. "There you go ," he says as he hands over a bag. "Say , you're new , right ? You want me to show you round town a bit ?" he offers. "I could show you all the secret chill spots , of course ."

Harry's smile softens into a fond look, one that is weirdly loving, and also, for some unknown and mildly terrifying reason, vaguely _familiar_. "please, that would be very kind. i'd love to."

"Cool , tomorrow at twelve in front of the store ? Take your cake with you , please ," Louis grins, even though his insides are coiling in, and he feels sick. It's an intensely realistic feeling of déjà-vu that falls over him, but Louis _knows_ something like this has never happened.

"sure, works for me. and i will, but only if it's worked out. i still need to find a good balance between cake and cream, and stuff." Harry shrugs his shoulders, then waves goodbye.

Then Louis is left alone, the nausea fading slowly. What the hell.

"Oh well ," he says. "I have a date , hell yeah."

"YOU HAVE A DATE?" Niall squeals. "LOUIS THAT'S AMAZING, WITH WHOM?"

The dialogue box had popped up too soon and too big for Louis to handle, and he flinches. Niall quickly apologises.

"OOPS, SORRY. I'LL BE MORE QUIET NEXT TIME."

The all-caps text from Niall wasn't very loud, it was just very _there_. It's not like he's screaming all the time.

Individuals all have different way of talking. Louis likes to call it the second voice, but it's more of a visible personality than a sound. Some people always talk in **bold** , while others, like Niall, in ALL-CAPS. Louis spaces his punctuation like words, something that annoys Liam terribly.

"With Whom, Though?" asks Liam. "I Thought There Was No One You Liked."

"There's someone new in town ," Louis replies, dropping his bag and heading towards the kitchen. Niall and Liam follow like lost puppies, desperate for some gossip. Louis sighs. "His name is Harry , and he came into the store today . He's super endearing , and I'm supposed to show him around town tomorrow . He didn't say it was a date per se , but I'd like to see it like one ."

"WHAT IS HE? A WOLF, LIKE LILI?" asks Niall with a bright smile. "OR FINALLY ANOTHER VAMP, BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE CRAIC!" Louis shrugs as an answer, he didn't recognise the traces of magic that Harry left behind. Must be a new specie of monsters.

Liam nods, "I Might Have Seen Him Around Town Today. Curly Hair, Right? He's Taller Than You Usually go For."

"He's just a giant ," Louis indignantly replies. "But yes , that's him."

"COOL, I'D LIKE TO MEET HIM. CAN WE GO WITH YOU TOMORROW?" Niall asks, then rethinks. "YOU KNOW, NEVER MIND. I DON'T LIKE THIRD-WHEELING MUCH."

"You'd also very much hinder my mission to ask him on a real date , so no thank you ." The kettle boils, and Louis makes his evening cuppa. "What're we doing for dinner , lads ?"

"Niall's Idea Was A Simple Curry, So I Suppose That Might Be Ok," Liam says. Good lad, Liam. "Oh, And Louis, Helvetica Came By To Give You This," Liam then adds. "She Said It's From 'Dings."

"Wing Dings ? What's the old lad got for me now ?" questions Louis, but making grabby hands at the package Liam is carrying nonetheless. He opens the box, and finds a new pair of Vans. "Oh , wicked !" he smirks. "Time to roughen these boys up a little ." He then proceeds to throw them out of the window, into the January frost in front of the pavement of their little house.

"You Have The Weirdest Habits, I Swear To God, Louis." Liam rolls his eyes, but doesn't acknowledge him any further. Louis had already exited the house, and taken the shoes for an upside down walk.

Wing Dings is the skeleton grandfather of an old friend of Louis, who travelled far away from the island. The old man had found Louis as a baby wisp, lost in the forest, and had taken the time to return him to civilisation. There, Louis had met his grandson, Calibri, but Cal had moved away when he was old enough, leaving the island and his family and friends alone. Dings then switched to giving Louis too many gifts instead. He visits the married couple frequently, and likes playing with their cat, Century. They are old bones, but Louis loves them dearly.

The shoes are thoroughly dirtied by this point, so Louis moves back inside. Niall is waiting patiently for the curry to be cooked, and Liam is reading the book he'd been reading for ages. Louis goes to his room, and falls on his bed. He's exhausted, both physically and mentally. He just kept glowing today, draining all the energy from himself, as if Fate wanted him to be excited for the day. After Harry had shown up, the flickering had stopped, so Louis supposes he was the reason he felt so on edge the entire day. He checks his HP, only to see it's completely full. He drops his hand back on the mattress, and sighs deeply. What is wrong with him today?

He was running early, for a change. Liam was almost shocked immobile, and immediately started sniffing him to find out if something was wrong with him, while Niall laughed in the distance. Bloody wolves, can't keep their noses to themselves.

As he arrived at the store, he checked his clock to see how long it would be until Harry would pop up. Five more minutes, he could do that. Maybe he could buy a flower for him, now that he's on main street- but no, that would be too official, keep that for the official first date.

"hey, sorry if i'm late," a voice says behind him. Louis turns around, beaming with a brilliant smile. Harry looks beautiful, with a flowery sheer shirt tucked into black skinnies. His hair is tied up in a side braid laid on his shoulder.

"I like the braid ," Louis says, "it fits you ."

"thanks," mumbles Harry. "i'm trying to learn myself new braids every couple days, to switch it up a bit. enough about me, where do you want to go first?"

Louis nods. "First a short trip round town is good. I don't know where you've been already, but we'll take the bike to be quick."

Apparently Harry was very clumsy, and tripped three times by juts trying to climb on a bike. Harry shamefully looks down with a pout, and lets a noise as Louis is still laughing. "stop laughing," he whines.

"Sure , Mr. I Have Max Stats In Everything ," Louis teases, but helps him up. "How is it that you can't get on the bike ? Never cycled before ?"

Harry shakes his head. "never felt the need to. i'm quick. i don't mind learning though. i like learning."

"I noticed ," Louis replies. "The bike is paced perfectly for a good day round the island."

And so they depart, albeit slowly with Harry's handicap on the bicycle.

"Look to your left to view the beautifully tiny church , where nobody ever comes , so it's just used for movie props or décor ," Louis says as they ride past the town's church. It's indeed very tiny, and never used. It's been eons since they had a ceremony in there. Maybe a wedding.

Harry smiles at Louis, completely ignoring the church. "why don't you make something of it? yanno, a community centre or something, to bring together the people."

Louis shrugs, but the longer he thinks about the idea, the more definite he becomes of handing the idea to the mayor of the island. They continue to ride the docks, where there aren't any boats this time of day. The island is quite far from the mainland, and it takes at least half a day to get there. "Just before midday , like now , is when they're in the middle of their journey ," Louis tells Harry. "They return around eight pm ." Harry slows down significantly, probably watching the beautiful sight of the sea and the sun. Louis sees the DWs from the side of the road. They're the most important construction, Louis knows so, because it's gone wrong before.

"Those are the Dams , you might know them as the famous Delta Works . They create both magical energy and electricity from nothing more than water . They also protect our peaceful lives from the wild waters behind them . The sea ain't your friend , sometimes ." Harry nods.

They continue.

They pass main street, and the laboratory, not stopping, before they head towards Mount Berett. They ride past endless flower fields, where Harry asks to take a break.

"these fields are beautiful. what are they planted for?" Harry asks as they step into a small clearing at the side of the road. Louis looks up to the eternal sea of yellow.

"They're the previous king's favourite flower . It's to honour his sacrifice ." Louis thinks back to when he was a tiny flame, still. His mother and he would often sit in the field, watching the sun rise. "The humans killed him after he chose to mercy them , as you know . Probably . Bloody unfair war , that ."

He hears Harry hum next to him. The sun shines brightly, it really is the perfect day.

"why did the humans attack in the first place?" Harry questions out loud. Louis turns to him in curiousity.

"Do you really not know ? I thought everyone did ."

"i probably know, i just forgot."

"They have stronger souls . Monsters are held together with magic , mostly . Humans are made of magic and something else ," Louis says. "Their souls are able to persist after death . The power got into their heads , and they attacked ." Louis disappointedly shakes his head. Humans are selfish creatures, they don't care about anyone but their kind. He's never met a human before, but he'd know he would keep his distance with it.

"that's horrible." Harry shivers. "so many lives, all gone in a flash."

"Yeah , but that's the far past ," says Louis. "They gave up not too long after, the humans . They felt too guilty , or something . Our king was dead , by their hands , and monsters were attacking like nothing ever before . They were far too weak to keep going , even with their souls ."

"so they surrendered?" Harry asks. "just like that? they weren't determined enough to continue?"

"Mate , you siding with humans , now?" Louis jokes, but his laugh fades when Harry doesn't seem to change expression. "Mate , you serious ? Humans are cowards , only completing their tasks when they're sure they will win , and having prejudices against monsters , always thinking they're better than us . They're trash ."

Harry purses his lips. "is that what you were taught?"

Louis raises his chin. "It was ."

They stare at each other, neither surrendering. Then, Harry sighs deeply.

"i suppose our friendship ought to end right here, then," he says, and lays down in the sun. He looks sad, and Louis doesn't like him sad.

"What ? No , I still need to ask you on a date !" he exclaims, then frowns at himself. "I did not mean to say that , oh my God I am so sorry ," he gushes, but Harry cuts him off. He's chuckling at least, so that's that. He still looks sad. Louis wants to hit himself in the face, seriously.

"i'd love to go on a date with you, but there's a slight problem here," Harry says, then bites his lip. (Louis watches him intently, savouring him entirely. Some parts of Harry's braid have fallen apart, and are spread on the ground he's lying on, wild and unruly. His eyes are glistering wetly in the sun, and his lips whiten by the hard grip his teeth have on them. Then he releases, and they become full and red. He sits up. Louis quickly shakes his head back to reality.)

"i don't know how to tell you." Harry keeps his gaze to the ground.

"Are you pro-human ? Where did you grow up ?" Louis asks, "because everyone I know from here is quite against humanity ."

"doesn't matter."

"Then what is it ?"

A long silence follows, and Louis is about to say something. Then-

"I'm human."

And, ok. Louis should have seen that one coming. "But- how ?" he stammers, retreating further away from Harry, who looks like he's been slapped. "There hasn't been a human sighting since forever . Why did you come here ?"

"i've been here forever. you just never noticed me until now. really," the _human_ winces with how unrealistic that sounds. "it's really true. i was a PA of a scientist in the laboratories. i didn't come here to terrorise anyone, i swear. i genuinely like you."

"Then why did you lie to me ?" Louis whispers. Harry had been so nice, why did he turn out to be, this? Louis feels so betrayed.

"because look how you react! you can't say you wouldn't have done that too on the first day."

"No , because I would've avoided you like the plague . It's because of your kind that monsterkind suffered so much !" Louis screams. "Because of your kind, monsters were stuck for so long , without any hope ! Because of you , so many monsters were dusted !" He throws a stone to the _human_ in fear and anger. It hits Harry on the head, he just sobs.

"You killed our king , you heartless _monster_ , he _spared you-_ "

"Not me, Louis!"

Capitalisation. Harry is serious. He is also silently crying.

"god damn it, i didn't do that, i've been alive since 1994, the war took place so long before that. it wasn't me, it were the humans alive before me." He takes a shaky breath. Louis feels like he's going to be sick. "it wasn't me. i know what is right and what is wrong. i know acting is better than fighting. i-" he gasps, "i'd never do that," he whispers, and breaks down.

"Harry ! Oh God , shit ," Louis curses, then throws himself around Harry, clinging onto him in a tight hug. Harry cries into his shoulder, out of guilt or out of relief. Maybe both, Louis ponders, but lets Harry hug him back, arms tightening around his middle, even though he feels unsafe. He doesn't like the position he is in, now: he feels vulnerable, with a human clasping their hands into his shirt; his glow keeps flickering, keeps draining him; he's going against all his beliefs, all his morals, and it feels right for some god-awful reason. All he can think about is Harry's wellbeing.

(He'd have to get used to the fact that Harry the Human isn't an enemy, but that'll be ok. He likes Harry. He's going to try.)

It's not after a long time that Harry calms down.

"ah, sorry," Harry wrings in his eye ( _his human eye, holy shit, Louis is yet to have it processed_ ), and giggles nervously. "i really let myself go there."

Louis shrugs. 'You're what my mother warned me about ,' is what he thinks. "It is what it is ," is what he says. Harry nods, his shoulders slump and his eyes fall down (not before stopping at Louis' collarbones, where five words are forever tattooed onto his skin, how does he _know_ ). Slowly, he picks up Louis' hand from his lap, and holds it tightly with both hands.

"louis, i promise you. i'm never going to have the intent to hurt you. i have a stronger soul, and yes i have determination," he humourlessly chokes out a laugh, "but i will _never_ hurt you intentionally. please remember that."

Louis stares at him in shock, his hand flinching in the grip Harry holds on it. Harry's hands are warm, and comfortable. He isn't holding too tight so Louis won't be able to pull away. They're a gentle pressure, a reminder of his promise. Louis nods.

"I will ."

A moment passes in tranquillity, a silence of peace falling between them. Then Louis perks up. "So did you ever find the good ratio of cream and cake ? I'd totally forgive you if you have any of that ."

"i did," Harry laughs wetly. "i even took the whole cake with me. care to join me for lunch?"

"Hell to the yes ," says Louis. "You can't have expected me to say no ."

"i didn't," Harry's reply sounds muffled as he searches through his bag near the bike. The wind isn't very strong, but Harry still sounds as if it's coming from far. "i hope you'll enjoy."

Oh , don't worry , human ," Louis grins, and makes grabby hands to the box Harry is holding, "I will for sure ." Harry smacks him on the head.

"that isn't funny. i don't like being called human like that," he scolds. "do you enjoy being called will-o'-the-wisp all the time? it's rude." He takes out the cake from the container he'd brought, and hands Louis a large piece.

There's a lot of cream, but not too much. It seems like Harry really did succeed. "Whoa , well done . Seems like a good balance ," Louis tell him, and Harry beams. "But now the ultimate test ." He takes a large bite, and then moans at the explosion his senses experience.

"is it good?" asks Harry, always the shy perfectionist. Louis nods enthusiastically.

"It's great . What did you put in the cream ? It's too delicious to be plain ," he notes.

"it's not regular whipped cream," harry beams. "it's chocolate meringue butter cream. with a little vanilla, to bring out the flavour." Louis understands none of that, but happily continues eating. His baking skills could be upped a bit, now that he thinks about it. The most difficult thing he can make is around the level of chicken with mash. If he followed a recipe step-by-step.

"So how did you get such high stats in the first place ," Louis then decides to ask. He's still curious. "Is that a human thing , or …"

"it isn't," Harry replies, mouth full of cake. He swallows the bite, then tries again. "it isn't. it's just a me thing. it's not very impressive, but i did have quite a long time figuring it out."

"That's impressive , even if you don't think so ," comments Louis. "I've been trying to raise my DEF , for if I ever got in a fight real dangerous , like with a human- um . Yeah . But now I'm trying to regulate them a bit." He awkwardly grins, but Harry doesn't look insulted.

"we could train a bit, if you want. maybe not today," Harry suggests, and Louis looks up in surprise. "but next time, or if you ever feel like it. i'll give you my phone number, so that if you ever want to, you can hit me up." He smiles, and hands Louis his mobile. Louis keeps expecting Harry to have different things, different habits and different items, more _human_ , but it's exactly the same model Louis owns. He sends himself a short text, giving back the device to Harry, who adds his number as well. The way he holds the phone is familiar to Louis, but he can't quite put his finger on it. Now that he's noticed that, he starts noticing other movements that feel so so Harry, even though he doesn't even know Harry at all yet. He sticks out his tongue before a bite, he smirks crookedly. His ears sometimes twitch, and then he scrunches up his nose all cutely, he combs the fringe of his hair to the side, he puts his phone in his bag instead of his jeans pocket, Louis can't make anything of it, of why it feels like he knows Harry for so long already. It's almost if his soul remembers Harry.

They continue their trip, but not before Louis asks Harry one more question. "Say ," Louis begins, and Harry looks up in question. "Did we really meet in the convenience store ? I know you from somewhere , or at least I recognise some of your mannerisms ," he trails off, but Harry seems like he's in doubt. Louis waits patiently.

"i- no, i don't think so. i've met you before yesterday, i'm pretty sure." He frowns deeply. "but i honestly can't remember when. what in the world…"

They stand there for a minute, Louis keeps watching Harry deep in thought. The ear twitching returns, and he chuckles, which seems to snap Harry out of his mind palace. "Well then ," says Louis. "On y va ?"

It's much later when they reach the slightly snowy summit of Mt. Berett. Harry is in awe with the beautiful scenery, and stands there gawking at it for quite some time. Louis is also very much impressed, just like every other time he's gone up here. The top of the mountain isn't very high, but it's the highest location of the island, which means that if you stand on the (quite flat) peak, the whole island is visible in a 360 degrees fashion. From here, showing the island is easy.

Though Harry didn't need a guide, apparently. He'd lived here since he was a baby. A human baby, darn. Louis needs to wrap his head around that already.

"Where were you born ?" asks Louis, and Harry points to a deserted place close to the forest.

"there was a mansion once. my parents lived there. i don't know where it's gone." Louis has never noticed the mansion before. Harry sighs. "i've moved to the mainland for some time, then decided to return. i've been staying in shore thing, which by the way is the worst name for a town near the beach."

"It's a horrendous pun , but you gotta get used to them ." Louis chuckles. "Everyone on the island loves puns , though I personally can't stand them ."

"i'd say they're pretty punny, myself."

"I hate you ."

"shall we head to shore thing next? we could get some _sand_ wiches," Harry cackles.

"Please stop ."

" _water_ you saying? _sea_ riously?"

"Stoooooop ."

" _shell_ i stop them?"

"Yes ."

" _whale_ , then."

"I am this close to throwing you into the sea ."

"don't be such a beach, lou."

"Lou ?" Louis shoots up as he hears the nick name, not expecting Harry to say it at all. It sounded so natural coming from his voice, Louis was almost already used to it. Harry curiously looks at him, not realising what he did.

"haz? are we saying our own names?"

"No , well , yes , but , you said mine first ," Louis says, still kind of shocked. A look of realisation appears on Harry's face. He makes a small 'oh' sound, and shrinks into himself.

"was that not ok?" he asks.

"No , it was . I like it , please do call me that ."

"then what is wrong?" Harry asks, always the observant one (actually, maybe not always. See example above). Louis shrugs mindlessly, and turns to the view in front of them. The sun is starting to set, and the sea is coloured a beautiful pink.

"I just , I feel like I've known you for so long , while in reality , we've only just met . My nickname sounded so familiar coming from you , like I've already heard it before . I've felt like this since we met , to be completely honest ," Louis explains, but it sounds weird in his own ears. It couldn't be that Harry and he were friends in the past, right? He'd remember. …Maybe they were friends in a past life. Maybe Louis had been human, too. Maybe Harry had been a monster.

"i feel so, too," whispers Harry. "it's as if a huge wave of déjà-vu is crashing into you, isn't it?"

"Yes , exactly that !" Louis excitedly shouts, and turns to Harry with a bright smile. "Perhaps we know each other from past lives ," he wonders.

Harry's reply was a soft and familiar grin, beautifully shaded in the orange light of the sun. His eyes sparkled wetly, a brilliant shade of green popping out more than normal as the light hit his iris. His braid was completely gone, a mane of soft curls shining back. Harry was breathtaking.

"perhaps."

The moment he steps back into his flat, he is bombarded with questions.

"HOW'S YOUR DATE GONE? IS HE NICE? ARE YOU GOING TO SEE HIM AGAIN?"

"Did He Enjoy Your Guidance? Will We Meet Him Soon? Why Are You Back So Late?"

Louis' hand shoots up into his hair, shoving it aside in frustration at the two monsters in front of him. "Crikey , can't a guy rest from his tiring date day before answering to you two ?"

He should've expected it, but the monster duo said a reply in unison. "NO." "No."

Collecting himself with a deep sigh, he pushes through the two, and plops down on the couch in the living room. Then he says, "If you want to ask , please do , but first chill ."

"Never Knew You Understand The Concept Of Chill, Tommo. You're Literally A Flame," said Liam in a teasing tone, Louis just flipped him the bird.

"Don't call me a bloody flame , Liam . I'm a will-o'-the-wisp , not a fire monster ."

"WELL, I SUPPOSE YOU ARE QUITE THE HOTHEAD, THOUGH," quips Niall, and Louis hits him hard on the head. "OW, WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR? THAT COST LIKE 5 HP," Niall whines.

"'S what you get ," he mutters. "It's not like it hurts you much , you have the highest HP of all of us ."

"YEAH, BUT YOU STILL HAVE THE HIGHEST ATK." Niall is pouting at Louis like a puppy, and God shouldn't _Liam_ be the one to do that?

"Shouldn't Liam be the one with the puppy face ? I mean , you're a cute leprechaun vampire hybrid mix and shit , but Liam is literally a pup ," Louis asks, and Niall frowns in annoyance.

"IT'S NOT WORKING. HOW DID YOU BECOME IMMUNE?"

"I've been living with you the past two years , Nialler . I know all your tricks ," Louis says, then just for giggles, he winks. Niall groans loudly, and Liam rolls his eyes dramatically, like he always does.

"Now Tell Us About Your Date, Come On!"

"All right , all right , but I need to tell something before another avalanche of questions ." Harry had given him permission to tell Liam and Niall about his … situation? background? humanity? Louis doesn't know what to call it. He frowns as he tries to find a way to ease them into it.

"Harry isn't , well , a normal monster , which is the reason i wasn't able to recognise his traces in the store ." Niall nods, and Liam waits patiently until Louis spits it out. Louis really doesn't want to.

"Harry's human ," he reluctantly mutters. "100% fully human and very nice , and I'd like to see him again ."

Liam sighs deeply and stares at him with an expression that says 'really?'. Niall winces. "DAMN, TOMMO. ALWAYS GOING FOR THE DIFFICULT ONES, INNIT," he says with sympathy. Louis shrugs helplessly.

"He's just so _nice_ , lads ," he whines. "I can't help but falling for him already , everything is so effortlessly easy with him ."

"Louis, He's A Human. A _Human_ ," clarifies Liam loudly. "He's Literally The Species We Hate Most."

"But he's so nice , he doesn't represent humanity at all ," counters Louis. "He's his own individual with a good personality , someone who treats people nice and isn't a danger at all . Though his background really doesn't add up."

"Doesn't Add Up? Don't You Think That's Suspicious?" Liam asks, voice laced with worry. Liam had always been a worry wart, thinks Louis, but he shakes his head no.

"Harry's a good guy , I can feel it in my soul ." That shut Liam up.

Niall spoke up; "HOW DO YOU MEAN, YOU CAN FEEL IT IN YOUR SOUL?" he says. "HAVE YOU-"

"No , we haven't bonded , and no , we haven't met before yesterday . We both feel weirdly at ease with each other , our souls keep resonating ." Louis shuffles with his feet uncomfortably. His glow flickers again. "I'm kind of frightened . I don't understand what's happening ."

"GO TO BED EARLY," Niall suggests, and lays back on the sofa. Liam nods at Louis in agreement. "WE'LL QUESTION YOUR MOTIVES TOMORROW."

"Thanks , guys ."

"No Problem, Lou. We'll Always Be Here For You."

Louis walks to his room, thinking back to the joyful day he's had with Harry. All of his morals were quite heavily thrown out of the window, and he feels quite lost. He also can't seem to process Harry is human and humans are maybe not too bad. He seems so nice, and this kind of instant connection is rare these days, yet Louis worries about why Harry is so secretive.

Harry's background is still very much a mystery. He grew up in a mansion that disappeared from the island, he worked in the labs, moved to mainland, and recently moved back. How old is he again?

Maybe humans age much slower than monsters. Monsters can live up to thousands of years old, what if humans are immortal? That means Harry could've fought in the war- no, Harry said he was born in 1994, which is roughly 22 years ago. That's younger than Louis, and Louis is so very young compared to some monsters. He must've been a young teenager when he worked in the labs. Holy hell, is Harry a science prodigy? If he had such a good job, or internship, or even apprenticeship if you will, why did he leave? And more importantly, how doesn't Louis remember Harry, when his soul does remember Harry's? Why were the two beings resonating between each other? Where is the missing link?

Dropping himself on his bed, he sighs deeply to calm himself down. Then he carefully summons his soul to the physical realm.

Souls are weird things. They don't take up space in your inventory, while carrying the souls of other individuals does. They're the source of magic, for monsters and humans, the magic that stabilises their body so it won't fall apart into dust. When a soul is destroyed, a final burst of magic is released and the body of the monster falls apart, as monsters don't have enough physical matter to keep everything together without magic.

Louis' soul is a brightly sparkling, white heart, pointing up. Some would say it's upside down, Louis's always said that heart symbols are upside down instead. It floats in his palm, pulsing magic into the air.

A monster soul won't persist after the death of the individual. It will break when the monster falls. This is possible through illnesses, old age, or of course fights. Louis's not yet seen many monsters die, with the small number of years he is alive. His gran's old neighbour had fallen down, people had to collect the dust for the family, for the funeral.

Louis wonders what a human soul looks like. Would it be as bright as a monster soul? Would it be a heart? Or more like a star? Maybe it'll be human shaped. That'd be hilarious.

He wonders what would happen if a human falls down, dies. Their souls live on, they don't shoot all their magic away, but keep it inside, to keep the soul alive whilst being separated from its husk. The physicality of the body needs less magic to keep together, so it stays like it was when it was alive. What would that _do_ to a body without a soul? Would they be a zombie? A body forever lying there? He'd heard about human funerals, where the whole body was put in a box and buried ceremonially.

As he watches his soul shine brightly, he wonders what Harry knows about souls. He worked in the labs, after all. The labs were a place to study the magic and efficiency of souls. He wonders if Harry knows how to maximise the efficiency of the soul, for monsters. He wonders if Harry could find out and publish it, so that humans will finally be seen in a new and brighter light, a light that has helped monsters evolve.

His eyelids become heavy, so he returns his soul to where it belongs inside him. From there, he closes his eyes, and sleeps.

The first thing Louis thinks about when he wakes up, is how he will ask Harry to go out with him again. The second thing Louis thinks about, is the reluctance to get out of bed and talk to Liam and Niall. The third and last thing he thinks about, is what the hell his life has come to.

With great struggle and loud groans, he manages to pull himself out of bed. He quickly dresses himself in a not too smart looking outfit, but still nicer than most of his usual clothing.

In the living room are already the two monsters seated, appearing to be waiting for Louis to enter. Louis slumps his shoulders, and walks towards them. They both look up, Niall from his breakfast and Liam from the newspaper he's reading. He tightly waves at them, Niall nodding back with a mouth full of cereal and Liam smiling at him in silence. It all feels forced and awkward. Louis retreats to the kitchen, where he picks up the leftover piece of the cake Harry gifted him. With it, he walks back to the dinner table, and slams his hands on the wood.

"Ok , what the hell , you two ," he says, and Liam and Niall flinch at the loud smack. "I'm not made of glass , I'm still completely normal . Don't be so afraid , crikey ."

Liam flinches again, Niall nods solemnly. "SORRY, LOU. WE'RE JUST WORRIED ABOUT YOU BEFRIENDING THE HUMAN," he apologises, and Louis understands, he really does. He just doesn't think it justifies this kind of behaviour.

"I don't want to befriend him , I want to date him ," states Louis, which makes Niall laugh, though the tension is still there.

"Lou, We Won't Stop You If You Really Want To, We're Your Friends," Liam says with guilt in his voice. "We Just Want You To Be Careful."

"And I fully understand , but I am my own person . I can take care of myself , and Harry really isn't bad . I want to meet him again ," he says, then starts. "Shit , how do I start a conversation with him ? How am I going to ever ask him out , oh my God ," he panics. "I'm shit at romancing ."

"YOU REALLY ARE," says Niall, which Liam gives him a slap on the head for. Louis winces, because he sees the HP draining from Niall, who groans in pain.

"You Need To Be Confident, You Know What You Have To Do."

Louis takes out his phone, and hovers his thumb over the 'call' button under Harry's name. He's terrified. "Should I text him instead ?" he goes to say, but Liam pushes down on the forever floating thumb , so it taps on the touch screen, activating the call. Then he grabs Niall, and runs away. Louis stands frozen as the 'calling . . .' keeps reappearing, until it stops, and the screen goes black.

"hello?" sounds softly from the speakers, and Louis shivers. He really needed more prep than this. He presses the speaker to his ear, and breathes in.

"Um- Hi ," he says. He sighs in relief when Harry chuckles and exclaims his name.

"louis! hey, what can i do for you?"

"I- um I was thinking , would you like to meet up , today ?" he stutters, then starts. "If you can't , that's fine , we could go somewhere when you're free-"

"i'd love to," Harry cuts him off. "where would you like to go?"

"Well , I was thinking either the beach or the forest , as those two most of the time are nice . Which one do you like best ?"

"i prefer the forest, but the beach is nice too, at times like this. it's going to be very sunny, today, i hear," says Harry, and Louis can hear him trying to decide. "we could have a picnic on an open field in the forest?"

"Oh , yes , of course . I could pick you up in an hour ," Louis suggests, his soul beating loudly from deep within him. His glow keeps flickering, but he doesn't mind.

"that's great. i'll bring snacks. did you enjoy the rest of the cake?"

"I did , and so did my roommates , i figured . There was a small piece left when I walked in this morning ."

Harry guffaws, and Louis grins brightly at it. He wants to make Harry laugh like that at all times.

"that's wicked. i'm quite sorry to disappoint already, but i haven't baked anything yesterday, so we've got to make do with store-bought cookies, and tuna salad on sandwiches ," Harry says, chuckling slightly. "but it's homemade tuna salad, so it's ok."

"Sounds delish . Text me the address , and I'll be there in an hour ." He moves to disconnect, but Harry halts him.

"one more question," he says. "is this a date?"

Louis' glow shades bright red, and he feels himself becoming warmer. "I- um , yes ? Only if you want to ," he stammers. Harry stays silent, so Louis waits.

"you're so sweet, lou. i'd love to," he eventually says, a smile evident in his voice. Louis releases the breath he hadn't noticed he'd been holding.

"Great , then , see ya soon ," he gushes, and Harry tells him goodbye.

He really tries to contain the squeal that escapes him after he's put down the phone, but to no avail. Liam and Niall can laugh at him all they want, he's got a hot date waiting for him.

The day is indeed beautifully sunny, Louis thinks it's perfect for a game of catch; birds are singing, flowers are blooming. Maybe Harry wants to play later. Maybe he's up for a playfight. That's always fun, and raising his DEF a bit would be nice too.

"i'm so happy you aren't avoiding me," says Harry. Louis turns to him as they keep walking, but Harry just watches the trees above them wave in the wind. "i'd first expected to never see you again. but here you are."

"Why would I not want to see you again ?" asks Louis. "I already told you , I'm trying to change . I'm trying to see the good in humans , and you're a great example for that cause ."

"thank you," smiles harry fondly. "it means a lot to me when people say that."

"You being a good example ?"

"me being good in general. i want to do good to the world."

Louis nods. "That's a good catchphrase to live by ." They stay in a comfortable silence as they keep walking along the path.

"it's why i became a scientist," Harry then suddenly says. "i wanted to do good, but science isn't always good, i figured later on."

"How so ?" asks Louis. He understands what Harry is talking about, but he wants to know more.

"i'm sure you've heard of the nuclear weapons that have been developed in the past. that's just one example," explains Harry. "but the project i joined wasn't even general like that. it became too personal. souls are supposed to be private, and my old team completely demolished the wall of privacy that ought to be there. they said it was for greater good, but i didn't like it."

"So you left ?" assumes Louis. He'd probably do the same, if he'd been ordered to look at someone's most private belonging. Someone's _soul_.

"i left. there were some… complications, afterwards." Harry bites his lip. "they wanted to keep the research they'd found a secret, so they could experiment with it more until they'd understand everything. when i left, i carried a lot of information with me, that i had learnt while working with them. they didn't like it."

Louis stays silent, waiting for Harry to continue. He didn't, so Louis decides to pull his waist into a one-armed hug while they walk. Harry jumps in shock, but then sinks his body into it, comfortably leaning on Louis as they continue.

When they finally reach the open space of the forest, Louis runs to the middle, and throws the picnic blanket down. The sun is high up in the air, and there isn't a cloud in sight. It's still early April, but it's warm, with a slight breeze intruding ever so often.

Harry runs after him, laughing along with Louis as they stumble into each other, and fall down. The taller of the two squeaks as Louis pulls him down with him, to Louis' delight. They land on the soft grass, rucksacks forgotten next to them. It feels warm.

Harry is staring into Louis' eyes, and Louis can't look away. He's quite angry with his soul, can't it just relax around Harry for once? He wants to impress him, not scare him away. "oh dear," Harry whispers. Louis releases a breathless laugh.

"Oh dear ," he repeats, softly. He feels Harry's soul resonate to his, and he seriously considers the chance they're soulmates. It's low, but it's there, and right now, it's completely possible.

Harry's stomach rumbles, breaking the illusion between the two. Louis bursts out laughing. Harry pouts, but Louis sees he's fighting off a smile. "i'd really like to kiss you," he says, and Louis' nonexistent stomach does a flip, "but my stomach has other ideas.

"Fine , then ," Louis gets off him, and retrieves the backpacks. "See if I ever kiss you after this ."

He hears Harry whine from behind him, and grins. "but louuuuuuu," Harry says, "humans die of food deficits. we're not very fond of this magic non-material food you weirdoes eat."

Louis pokes him in the side, causing Harry to shriek and move away. "I can't believe humans are so needy , had I known this , I'd stayed away . But !" He takes out the sandwiches, and hands two to Harry. "Here you go , you little monster ," he winks. Then he picks one for himself, and takes a bite. It's not as sweet as the cake from the day before, but it's delicious.

Harry's prepared far too much for the two of them, but Louis is able to eat an endless amount of physical food, as he quite literally doesn't have the stomach to digest it to become less hungry. His HP is still all the way full, so he doesn't need to eat anything magical either. They lie together in the grass, comfortably enjoying each other's company. It wasn't until Harry moved to get up, that Louis realised he fell asleep while basking in the sunlight. He shot up, glow bright red in embarrassment.

"Oh , my God , I'm so sorry ," he starts to apologise, but Harry put a finger on his mouth to shut him up immediately. "Mfhmm ?"

"don't worry, lou. i did, too." He does look quite drowsy, now that Louis looks at him closely. "and it was cute. sorry i woke you." Louis sighs deeply.

"I'm still really sorry , this is probably the worst date ever ," he pouts.

"au contraire, this was very relaxing, and i got to know you lots." Harry ruffles his hair, and picks up a bag. "you don't need to go a out for me, i like simple better. we better return now, though. it's getting dark."

"Awh ." The sun is indeed setting. Viewing the orange sky with Harry like this, fills him with joy. He gets an idea.

"Harry , I challenge you to a battle !" he exclaims, pointing his finger at Harry in playful demand

"excuse me," Harry sounds completely perplexed. Louis probably looks pleased, with the giant grin plastered on his face, and Harry lets out a slightly maniacal laugh. "in god's name why?"

"For fun , of course ." Louis frowns, and drops his hand. "Don't you humans battle for fun ? I'll be careful , it's not like I'm going to kill you ," he adds carefully. He's very aware of Harry being very reluctant to fight, but for what reason? Louis has no idea.

"i- um. no, i don't. and i know you won't. i trust you," Harry takes a deep breath, and shakily exhales. "ok. start the battle."

Louis' battle music plays (He's so happy he's made his own theme. It sounds epic). The surrounding area turns black, and Louis' stats become visible. He's at full HP, and of course his LV1 next to it. He hands Harry the first turn, by choosing the SPARE option of the menu.

"Show me what you can do Haz ."

Harry blinks for a moment, then presses one of the icons on the menu in front of him. Harry's menu is invisible to Louis, in order to make the battle fair and equal, without being able to know what is coming.

Harry presses the final choice on his menu, and Louis braces himself. He wonders what Harry's power is based on. He himself has fire magic, obviously, but what would a human have-

"what do you do with a dead scientist?" says Harry, completely out of the blue. Louis starts in surprise. _What?_

"I don't know , what do you do with a dead chemist ?" he asks, not taking an eye off Harry, who doesn't seem to be ready to counter-attack at all. What the hell?

"if you can't helium, and you've tried curium, you might as well barium," Harry cackles. The turn switches to Louis. Did Harry really waste his turn for that god-awful pun.

"Did you really waste your turn to tell me a science joke ?" Louis deadpans. The gleeful expression Harry is wearing tells him that, yes, he did.

"Ok , then I'll attack instead ," he grins, and summons multiple rings of fire that dance around Harry. Harry's soul blinks into existence, and Harry startles before jumping around to avoid getting hit by the flames. Meanwhile Louis tries to keep his magic under control. Harry's soul is _beautiful_. It's an upside down monster soul, a normal heart, but it's a brilliant red, radiating something strong, stronger than normal magic. It feels, to Louis it feels like Harry is filled with-

With determination.

With newfound courage, he summons more attacks, trying to hit Harry once, but then his turn is over and Harry's avoided all of them. "Well done , Hazza ," Louis praises, and Harry beams at him, then chooses one of the options of his menu.

"why did the mushroom go to the party?"

"Harry , no."

"because he was a fun-guy! a fungi, do you get it, lou?"

Louis groans as he holds in a laugh. "That was absolutely horrid ," he says.

"you're laughing!" Harry exclaims.

"I am and I hate it !"

Louis attacks again, and Harry keeps evading everything. Louis braces himself for the next pun, his mind all over the place. He's never seen someone ACT like this before. Is he lowering Louis' awareness, so he can strike a critical hit?

"but if he was such a fun guy, why wasn't the party at his place?"

"I don't know, Harry , why wasn't it ?"

"because there wasn't much room!" They laugh, but Louis can't put his heart in it.

"organic chemistry is difficult; those who study it have alkynes of trouble!" Harry keeps up the incredible speed, just to throw out another pun. "why can't you trust atoms?"

He doesn't understand. Why isn't Harry fighting? Does he see Louis as weak? His stats are maxed out, but that doesn't mean he can't fight back, right? Maybe he doesn't want to hurt Louis, but honestly, Louis feels like he's not being taken seriously. He's being pushed aside like he's nothing. "I don't know , Harry ," he says bitterly.

"because they make up everything!" _weak weak weak_

"Bloody fight back , Harry!" He creates a flamethrower from his hands, waving them at Harry, who seems to be so fast he's almost teleporting.

"why did the skeleton want a friend? because he was feeling _bonely_!"

"Harry , please ," Louis softly begs, but Harry really doesn't hear him over the fire everywhere, or the music playing in the background. Harry seems like he's having fun, at least. Louis' stomach churns. He doesn't even have a stomach. It's Harry's turn.

"hey, are you a coffee, because i like you a _latte_ ," he grins, but then falters when he sees Louis' expression. He startles. "lou? what's wrong?"

"You're not taking it seriously ," Louis yells. "Does it feel like a joke to you ? You're not funny ."

"what do you mean, lou?" Harry's brows knit in confusion, in shock. "i'm taking it seriously. of course i'm taking it seriously!" His soul darkens into a burgundy shade, and resonates to Louis', in order to calm him down. "this is how i fight!"

"Then why won't you attack me ?! Am I too weak ? Is that it , mister My Stats Are Maxed , because it sure feels like it !"

"no!"

"Then what ?" Louis screams, and traps Harry inbetween walls of fire.

"louis, stop!"

"Why should I ?!"

"because i'm literally down to one hp!"

What? "What ?" Louis asks, taken aback. The firewalls disappear, and his turn is over. Harry sighs in relief. Louis gives up. He's never felt so defeated before. If Harry attacks him now, he'd probably be dusted. Though, one HP? That's not expected. Did the evasion act drain him of energy?

Even though Harry hasn't chosen what he'd do for his turn, his soul floats towards Louis, and instead just laminating the battle with, it fills him with the feeling of determination the closer it gets to him. It stops when it reaches a place about thirty centimetres in front of him. He holds out his pal under it, and it flutters, and resonates.

"lou,' harry says. He seems to have chosen the spare option of the menu. Louis doesn't understand. "please check my stats."

The menu appears in front of him. The music is gone. While holding the human soul carefully, he presses the CHECK option.

HARRY – ATK 1 DEF 1 HP 1

THE EASIEST ENEMY. DOWN IN ONE HIT.

Louis is stunned, stares in horror at the dialogue box. The soul disappears from his hand, and the colour returns to their surroundings. Their feet land back onto the ground.

"i'm sorry i made you feel weak, it wasn't my intention at all," Harry starts, but is interrupted when Louis shoots him a shocked expression.

"What the fuck ?!" Harry flinches back, and Louis takes a deep breath. Then he starts yelling again. "No , what the fuck ! Harry , what the fuck was that ?! I could've killed you ! You could've warned me , or better yet , straight out told me beforehand , so that i could say 'ok sure i won't battle with you , that's fine' , so that I wouldn't stand rigid in battle, scared shitless of myself, thinking that I could've hurt you so bad !" He hits the human hard on his arm, who winces in return. "You just did it for laughs , didn't you ? Just to make me feel horrible about myself , you selfish bastard !"

"lou, please!" Harry begs. "you didn't hurt me, nor did you kill me! i'm perfectly fine, i'm capable to take care of myself, and have fun! i know my limits, and i like fighting." Louis shivers. The sun has gone down significantly since the start of the battle. He blames it on the cold. Harry takes him into his arms, where he holds him tightly. Louis sobs. What the hell is wrong with him lately? "i didn't mean to insinuate you're weak, or make fun of you. this is my way of battling, i'm a pacifist."

"A ," Louis sniffles. "A pacifist ?"

"means i don't like fighting," Harry explains. "i only fight if it's unavoidable."

"How is it that your stats are so low ?" Louis asks. He buries his head in Harry's shoulder. It feels comfortable like this, and he knows he should feel anger, but- "How are you able to survive like that ?"

"it's not why they're so low; this is as high as they can go, i'm afraid. i've tried a lot. didn't help," Harry says. He doesn't sound very sad. "i've come to terms with it, though. i can evade pretty well."

"I noticed that , honestly . I'm ... I was just really worried ," Louis whispers. They stay like that for a while, basking in each other's warmth and company, Harry's comfortable arms around Louis, as a protective charm.

Louis speaks up again. "Why did you accept ? You could've fled the battle ."

"it's an honour to anyone to fight you, louis," Harry smiles down at him. "you're strong, and maybe you need more battle experience to understand the honest techniques, before you become the real strongest. i have no doubt it's in you, though."

"I still don't understand ," Louis pokes him in the side, smiling at the indignant squawk coming from above him. "Will you explain ?"

"of course, just please don't poke me again." Though his tone is serious, his face shows endless relief. Just how much will Louis discover about Harry until the baggage will be too much?

"You've long lost your right to demand things ."

"sorry, sir."

"You better be ," Louis mutters, but squeals a very masculine sound as Harry picks him up over his shoulder. He's now eye-to-eye with Harry's bum. Bless the lord. "What do you think you're doing ?" he shouts at his tormenter, who just grins. Then he proceeds to duck, so he can pick up the bags from the ground, but Louis feels like he's falling to his death. "Be careful , you're carrying expensive goods ."

"don't i know it," laughs Harry, and then proceeds to pinch Louis' bum. Louis goes rigid, then smacks Harry's bum back. "oi, calm down back there, i'm very fragile, one hp and all that."

"That only counts if I really put my soul in it , and you know it ."

"i do." Louis senses a 'but' coming, though it doesn't come. What does come is a swift twirl from Harry, that sends Louis flying.

"Put me down already , you caveman !"

"and why would i do such a thing?" Harry gasps, and keeps twirling.

"So that I can finally ask you some questions about just now ," Louis bitterly replies. "Without yelling ."

"i'm not putting you down. you're upset and i am going to carry you home. what do you want to know?" Louis knows that really isn't the reason. He goes with it anyway. He has no desire to see Harry's face now, anyway, if he's really honest. Harry hands him a backpack, and then releases him to reposition himself comfortably on Harry's back.

"Have you always had only one HP ?" begins Louis. Harry shakes his head.

"when i was born, i had more. i looked like a prodigy, even. had pretty good stats overall." He shrugs, "it went away."

"But how ? It's impossible to downgrade stats."

"it just did."

Alright, sensitive subject. Fine. "How is your speed stat so high ?" he asks instead.

"It's not, all my stats are 1."

"Then how are you so good at everything ?"

Harry laughs loudly at that. "oh wow, that one i will remember for a long time. thanks, lou."

"I didn't mean to boost your ego , you fucktard ," Louis mutters. "How is it possible to be so quick with only 1 speed?"

"it's… it isn't."

"That's not a real answer , H ."

"it is now, soz. i'll show you my moves the second date, yeah?"

Louis groans loudly. "That's not even remotely funny . Worst innuendo I've heard, and I live with two blue-balled guys."

Harry snickers softly. "when am i going to meet the famous roommates?"

"Dunno, whenever you want . We're free like every weekend ."

"that's fine. i could visit this sunday." Then he hesitated. "or next week. i don't want to intrude, or move too fast. next week i could bring a cake. what do they like?"

"That's fine ," says Louis. He really needs some time to process everything that's happened the past three days. "Next week Sunday would be grand ."

"ok," Harry just says.

"Don't you ever worry about your HP ?" Louis asks. "Like , do you ever enter a battle where you think , oh , maybe I need to flee , or maybe I need to fight back ?"

"i never fight back, i've never fought back," Harry replies. "i have fled many battles, though."

"I see ." Louis buries his face in Harry's neck, and tightens his hold, so he won't fall. "You didn't really grow up in the mansion that disappeared , did you ? I can't ever remember a mansion being there , and I've lived here all my live ."

Harry stays silent, but _qui se tait_ , isn't it? thinks Louis."Where did you grow up ?"

"i'll tell you some other time."

"Were you really one of the scientists from the labs ? How come I've never seen you on a school trip ?"

That visibly makes Harry shiver. Louis raises his brows. "i dunno, maybe i looked too young for you to notice me."

"That's probably it . You're younger than me , there's no way you already worked in the labs at the age of 12 ."

"yeah, true." Harry's quiet.

"What was the project you were working on ? Soul magic ?"

"mhmm."

"What kind of research did you do ? Did you poke at someone's soul ?"

"yeah. i'm not very proud of my actions there."

"I see . Did you ever find anything about the human soul being stronger thing ?"

"i did. it wasn't like i wasn't curious what it could be. i prodded at my own soul as much as on others'. i'm not that much of a megalomaniac."

"I didn't say you were ," frowns Louis. "Was soul magic your specialty ?"

Harry shakes his head, then asks Louis for direction as they reach a crossroad. Louis knows their way is right, but he says left. Harry doesn't question him, but Louis gets the feeling he knows.

"my specialty is research on the theoretical fields of quantum magic." H huffs out a laugh. "quite a mouthful, but it essentially means i study how the laws of quantum mechanics work together with magic."

"Sounds like a lot of work ," comments Louis. He'd not have the patience for that, honestly.

"it is, i still work on my theories as often as possible. I'm actually impossibly close to something right now, but just as i almost have it, everything decides to fail me." He growls in frustration. "it's been so long, and i really want it to come together already."

"What's it about ?"

"the influence of spacetime on the _game_ , and the possible existence of the Void between hypothetical timelines. i've collected some proof."

"Spacetime ?" Louis' eyebrows shoot up into his fringe. "You mean you're almost grasping the possibility to travel through time ?"

"i'm almost grasping the explanation of said possibility," Harry clarifies. "it doesn't mean we could immediately control it." He then adds: "and teleportation, too. don't read over the space in spacetime, it's more important than you think. it's a collective, not two separate powers."

"But you left your team ? Who're you working with now ?" Louis frown deepens in confusion.

"i'm working alone," the other simply replies, and doesn't expand on it. Louis knows this topic is done.

"How did you know I liked tuna salad ?" he asks instead. It's an easy question, but Louis is endlessly curious as to how he'd guessed. He's expecting some Benedict Cumberbatch Sherlock actions, Harry is a genius, after all. Maybe he had a greasy stain on his work clothes on the first day, which is also quite likely.

"i- um. which way?" Harry says. they've arrived at yet another crossroad. Louis didn't expect to be there already. He thought it was much farther ahead. Maybe Harry had already finished his theory, and bent time to get there faster. Louis snorts at himself.

"Right ," he says.

"you glanced at the tuna salads when we met. we stood in the aisle next to them," Harry then answers. "i'd hoped you didn't do it on accident, so i could impress you later on."

"Awwwww ," Louis squeals. "That's absolutely precious . I knew there was a reason I keep your shady bum around ."

"my bum isn't shady."

"Your general way of living life in secrecy , lying to your future boyfriend , and somehow still not telling the truth after you've told the truth quite is . I merely shortened it with 'bum' ."

"…you're very perceptive," he hears Harry mutter. "and i've not lied to you since the human thing. i'm really trying."

"Then why hide the truth , still ?"

"because i value the privacy and choices others decide to make for themselves. Sometimes it's better not to know, Louis."

"Alright , point taken ," Louis scrunches his nose in distaste. "No need to get morose about it . You're easily irritable ."

"just continue your spanish inquisition."

Louis didn't understand the reference, but continued anyway.

"What's your theory about us feeling so at ease together , while we keep being hostile at each other ? In the time that I've known you , I've almost killed you once , freaked out on you twice , and keep making you miserable all the time ."

"that's interesting," Harry answers, nodding after a minuscule moment of hesitancy. "i really don't have a theory right now, other than us being soulmates that have met in a previous life. our souls definitely know each other, which is strange, because researchers have looked into soul death, and found that recycling souls isn't possible. Reincarnation might exist, but the soul wouldn't remember anything. straight or right?"

"Straight ," Louis mumbles. Harry is hiding something again. The edge of the forest is nearby, and they both see the light shining at the end of the tunnel of trees that hide them from the sky.

"One more question , then you can put me down again ."

"shoot."

Louis tries to phrase his question right, until he just goes for it.

"Why do you not want me to know about whatever you're hiding ?" he says. The end is less than forty metres away from them. "You told me yourself , I'm strong , I have it in me to become the strongest as well . Do you not trust me yet ? Or will it be a too harsh of a truth for me ?"

Thirty metres. "i told you, i think you're more than strong. it wasn't my intention to make you feel weak at all. i just, am not sure how you will react, and i've learnt to better be safe than sorry. i want to keep you around, lou."

Twenty metres. "So you don't trust me to stay with you ? I want to keep you around , too , Harry ."

"i do trust you, just not yet." Ten metres. "i'd like to tell you once we're steady."

"I won't forget you said that ," Louis mutters. Five metres. "It involves me too ." Two metres. "I have the right to know."

"now get off my back," Harry complains as soon as they step out of the shade of the trees. "we can fast-travel from here."

The bus of course stands ready at the stop when they arrive there. Louis can't shake off the feeling he's forgotten to ask something important.

It's not until late in the night that he remembers he's never told Harry about his lifelong dream. Harry shouldn't have known that, Louis would never tell someone that, not even Niall and Liam know of it. He's terrified as to how much Harry knows about him, and how little, how completely limited his knowledge about the human is in return. He doesn't sleep well the rest of the night.

"SO HOW DID YOUR DATE GO," Niall asks him the following morning. Louis honestly feels like garbage. It's been a crazy couple of days.

"Went okay ," he says. More he can't muster on this morning. He needs a little time to himself.

"And?" Liam gestures they want to hear more. "You Weren't Back Until Late In The Evening, We Assume You've Had A Good Night. Are Humans Not Good In Bed?"

"We didn't sleep together ," Louis grumbles, taking a long sip of tea. "He brought me home with the fast travel bus , after we fell asleep in the forest ."

"THAT'S LITERALLY THE DEFINITION OF SLEEPING TOGETHER, LOU," Niall quips. Louis is this close to attacking him with a fire ring.

"Your dialogue box is much too loud for me at this time of day . Please stay silent ."

"But Louis, Why Are You So Agitated?" Liam remarks. "You're Never Like This. What's Wrong With The Human?"

"A lot , but it doesn't matter ," sighs Louis. "We've talked it out , and hopefully will talk it out some more next Sunday ."

"Next Sunday?" Liam said, wanting Louis to elaborate. Louis rolls his eyes. He really didn't want to address this at least before Wednesday.

"We took some time off of each other , but are meeting here this Sunday . He wants to meet you two ," he explains. Niall looks unsure, while Liam stands perplexed in front of him.

"Meeting Him? I Didn't Want To Meet Him In The First Place, Certainly Not So Soon!" he exclaims. Louis massages his temples as he tries to control his glow. It's been frustratedly and irregularly fluctuating with wavelengths these couple of days and it's been hard on him. He isn't used to using so much energy outside of battle.

"Please learn to live with it ," he mumbles, and retreats to his room. "I want to keep him around for a little longer ," he shouts after himself, "and therefore I need your approval , dads ."

He hears Niall's cackle, but quickly closes the door behind him. His soul's been restless since early morning, and it's really tiring him out. He wants to see Harry again, but knows it's better to keep a distance for at least a short while.

Out of the corner of his eye, he sees the pair of shoes he'd received not long ago, which brings up an idea to pass the time of day.

"Guys , I'm leaving to visit the ol' skeleton fam , I won't be back until sunset probably !" he shouts as he steps into the brand new but muddy Vans. "Don't wait up for me for dinner , bye lads !"

He's gone before either of the two boys in the living room can do more than turn their heads to the door.


End file.
